Vent valve



June 16, 1953 R, GATES 2,642,261

VENT VALVE Filed June 6, 1947 EVERY-UP Flu/M0 L 64 my Patented June 16, 1953 I VENT VALVE V v Richard L. Gates, Dayton, Ohio, assignor to Ourtis Automotive Devices,

corporation of Ohio I nc., Dayton, Ohio, at

Application June 6, 1947.8erial No. 752,3 7 1 This invention relates to spring pressed valves especially adapted for purging air from hot water radiators or the like, and specifically the invention deals with a vent valve with an internal protected valve seat and with a threaded inlet end that can be deformed without warping the valve seat.

This application is a continuation in part of my copending application Serial No. 681,577 entitled: Vent Valve, filed July 5, 1946, now Patent No. 2,577,654, issued December 4, 1951.

The vent valve of this invention, like the valve disclosed and claimed in the aforesaid parent application, includes an open-ended. screw plug body slidably receiving a solid valve member. However, the body of the present valve has a protected internal seat that cannot become fouled with piping compound or the like. The valve seat separates relatively large bores extending inwardly from opposite ends of the body and is therefore positioned at the thickest portion of the body to resist warpage. The internal valve seat makes possible the use of a very small diameter valve member thereby saving an additional amount of metal andat the same time maintaining ample flow capacity. The valve member carries a separate cap fixed thereon for coaction with .a sealing washer so that one end of the plug body will be sealed whenever the valve member is depressed to open the valve for drainage.

It is therefore an important object of this invention to provide a vent valve of the type disclosed and claimed in my parent application Serial No. 681,577 but requiring less metal and having an internal protectedvalve seat.

Another object of the invention is to provide a valve especially adapted for purging radiators and the like which is composed of a threaded plug-like body having an internal valve seat separating large diameter bores together "with a. valve plug slidable through the valve seat and carrying a resilient sealing washer for engaging the seat and a spring surrounding the plug coacting with the cap on the plug to hold the sealing Washer against the seat. 3 v .1 A still-further object of the invention is to provide a. spring loaded purge valve having a stamped, button-like end cap coacting with a 1 Claim. (Cl.,251137) sealing washer to close one end of the valve body when the other end thereof is opened for a purging operation.

- Another object of the invention is to provide a valve of relatively high flow capacity having an internal valve seat at the thickest portion of the body and arranged relative to a threaded 2 end on the body so that the end can deform without warping the seat. V Another object of the invention is to provide a'vent valve with areduced valve head'area so that a relatively light spring load on the head will result in a greater unit sealing pressure with out rendering the valve difiicult to operate,

A specific object of the invention is to provide a vent valve for purging air from hot water radiatorsor'the likecomposed of a screw plug type housing with an internal valve seat and a screen in the inlet end thereof to protect the seat from sediment and the like.

Other and further objects of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the annexed sheet of drawings which, by way of a preferred example only, illustrates one embodiment of the invention.

On the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a vent valve according to this invention.

V Figure2 is an end elevational view of the inlet end of the valve of Figure 1. i t I r Figure 3 is an axial cross-sectional view taken along the line III-4110f Figure 1.

I Figure 4; is a view similar to Figure 3 but showing the valve in opened position.

Figure 5 is an exploded axial sectional view, with parts in side elevation, showing the manner inwhich the valve parts are assembled.=

As shown on the drawings: a

The vent valve 10 is composed of open-ended plug-like body or housing H, asolid valve plug [2, a spring [3, a seal ring It on one endof the plug, av cap I5 on the other end; of the plug, a sealing washer l6 coacting with the cap [5, and a screen I! for the inlet end of the o y. w N

The ody H has a tapered externally threaded end portion H01. in the form of a circular shank for threaded'inse'rtion in the vent port of a. radiator or the like. A polygonal head llb is provided on the body adjacent the large end of the tapered threaded portion Ila and a radially extending hole He is formed through the polygonal head to provide the drain passageway for the body,

As best shown in Figure 5, the body I I has-a cylindrical bore H d extending inwardly from the threaded end thereof to a tapered bore lie which converges to a more acutely tapered bore Hf.

The bore Hf converges to a cylindrical bore or passagel lg at about the inner end of'the threaded portion. A fiat radially extending shoulder a hollow llh connects the bore i! g with a larger diameter bore Ili extending through a major portion of the polygonal head lib of the body. A second shoulder Hg! extends radially outward from the bore Hi to an enlarged counterbore ilk in the end face of the polygonal head portion. It will be evident, therefore, that the connecting passage l'ig between the bores lid and Hi is well inwardly from both open ends of the body and is surrounded by body metal having the greatest thickness in the entire body. The beveled mouth Hf of this passage Hg serves as a valve seat and it, too, is surrounded by a very thick body wall. The beveled bore lie serves as a guide to the seat I l f. r

The valve plug 12 is cylindrical and fits through the passage Hy except for an end head We thereon. This end head has a diameter slightly larger than the passage Hg. Agroove [2b is provided in the plug 12 adjacent the head 12a to receive the sealing ring M. This ring i4 is adapted to he slipped over the plug head or along the length of the plug into the groove no to be bottomed against the head l2a which extends almost to the outer circumference of the ring. A second groove 120 is provided in the plug along a portion of its length that is disposed in the passage Hy of the body when the valve is opened, thereby giving an increased flow capacity through the passage. A reduced diameter end portion I211 is provided on the plug to extend through the aperture I5a of the stamped cap I5. .The cap is bottomed on a shoulder l2e of the plug at the end of the reduced diameter portion. The free end of the reduced diameter portion [M i peened or spun over the face of the cap l5 at [2) to lock the cap on the shoulder He.

The sealing washer I6 is composed of compressed fiber, rubber, or the like non-metallic sealing material and is seated in the counterbore llk against the shoulder Ila of the body. The cap l5 has a skirt [5b with an end face adapted to sealingly engage the washer l6 when the valve is opened as shown in Figure 4.

The spring I3 surrounds the plug l2 and is compressed between the shoulder 1 N1. of the body and the cap 15. The spring fits freely in the bore 1 li of the body.

The screen I! is preferably cup-shaped with a side wall Ila sized for tightly engaging the wall of the bore Nd and with an end wall l'lb spanning the inlet end of the body. If desired, of course, the side wall Ila could be quite short,

and bottomed in a shallow counterbore (not shown) in the mouth of the bore lld. Alternately, the screen can be in the form of a fiat disk brazed or soldered on the end face of the body. The body II and the plug I2 are inexpensively formed screw machine parts designed to necessitate a minimum amount of metal while at the same time providing maximum strength and resistance to deformation of portions that should remain true. The threaded portion Ho can be made with a relatively thin wall and can deform to accommodate a sealing fit in a tapered bore. However, deformation of this portion will not deform the valve seat H which is surrounded by a wall portion of major thickness. The valve plug I2 is of relatively small diameter to save appreciable amounts of metal and the groove I therein increases the flow capacity of the valve since it is disposed in that portion of the plug which extends on both sides of the valve'seat and restricted passage I lg to give increased clearance for flow from the inlet to the outlet.

The cap i5 has a free sliding fit in the bore I lit. The spring acts on the cap to move it to the outer end of the bore His and to seat the sealing ring I4 on the valve seat Hf. As this sealing ring moves toward the valve seat l I) it is guided cen' trally of the valve seat by the tapered guiding bore He.

To open the valve, the cap I5 is depressed into the bore H16 until its skirt b sealingly engages the sealing washer 16 thereby closing the head end of the body but moving the sealing ring l4 off of its seat. The cap, by being bottomed on the sealing washer IE, centers the plug [2 in the passageway Hg and the groove l2c of the plu forms an ample conduit path from the inlet bore lid to the bore iii of the body whereupon fluid will drain through the outlet Hc. When the cap 15 is released the spring, of course, will return the valve to the closed position of Figure 3.

The valve seat H is protected from sediment by being inside of the body and is further protected by the filter screen ll.

The parts of the valve are easily assembled as shown in Figure 5. As therein shown, the sealin ring it is disposed over the plug to be seated in the groove 2. 3. The plug with the sealing ring thereon is then inserted into the body and the spring i3 is disposed around the plug in the bore iii-of the body. The sealing washer I6 is bottomed on the shoulder H9 and the end cap 15 is secured on the reduced portion 12d of the plug. The screen ii is pressed into the inlet bore lid and the assembly is ready for use.

From the above descriptions it will be understood that this invention provides a vent valve assembly which automatically seals one open end of a valve body when the other end is opened, and which has an internal valve seat surrounded by a suflicient amount of body metal to resist distortion even though other portions of the body are distorted.

It will, of course, be understood that various details of construction may be varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention and it is, therefore, not the purpose to limit the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the scope of the appended claim.

I claim as my invention:

A valve comprising a body having an exteriorly threaded tapered cylindrical shank at one end thereof and ahead at the other end thereof, said head having a bore therein terminating in a shoulder and a counterbore at the outer end thereof terminating in a second shoulder, said threaded shank having a bore therethrough terminating in a frusto-conical valve seat and a reduced diameter passage adjacent said first shoulder, a laterally extending port in said head communicating with the bore therein, a solid valve plug in said body having a reduced diameter shankportion extending through said reduced diameter passage into the shank bore and terminating in a radially enlarged peripheral shoulder, said plug shank portion having a second radially enlarged peripheral shoulder axially spaced above the first shoulder for entry into said reduced diameter passage, a cap on said plug slidable in said counterbore, a sealing washer bottomed on said second shoulder in the counterbore and coacting with the cap to close one end of the housing, a second sealing washer mounted on said plug intermediate said shoulders, and a spring surrounding said plug and held under compression between said cap and said first shoulder for urging said second sealing washer against said frusto-conical valve seat with said second shoulder positioned Within said reduced diameter passage, said spring being located in the chamber which is drained by said laterally extending port.

RICHARD L. GATES.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 656,849 Minor Aug. 28, 1900 862,009 Newell July 30, 1907 Number 

